FDOT: Funding caused delays in Palm Coast Parkway widening

The sight of orange cones, bulldozers and men in hard hats along Palm Coast Parkway is only days away, but there have been more than a few snags along the way.

By Tony Holttony.holt@news-jrnl.com

PALM COAST — The sight of orange cones, bulldozers and men in hard hats along Palm Coast Parkway is days away, but there have been more than a few snags along the way.A funding shortfall discovered in late 2013 contributed to construction delays for the six-laning project, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.A year ago, city officials predicted construction would begin in late 2013. In January, they said it would commence in February.Now the start date, according to a city media release, is Monday, although the city’s project manager, Carl Cote, said this week that construction would begin sometime between March 3 and 10.“We agreed on a (flexible) date, so that when the contractor starts, he’s on site every day after that,” Cote said.The project is expected to cost a little more than $13.5 million. Most of it, about $10.3 million, will be covered by FDOT but the remainder will be paid for by the city. That $3.2 million will come from the utility and street-improvement funds, respectively.Originally, the project was estimated to cost closer to $12 million. Jessica Keane, an FDOT spokeswoman, said the city asked FDOT last fall to cover another $1.3 million due to the higher-than-anticipated cost of materials.“What happened was not that unusual,” Keane said. “Things like this can happen with big projects.”The section of roadway from Cypress Point Parkway to the west and Florida Park Drive to the east will be expanded from four lanes to six. That portion includes the bridge over Interstate 95.Once the project begins, motorists traveling the 1.23-mile east-west route will see road crews, barriers and equipment for the better part of the next two years. Construction is scheduled to be completed by Oct. 11, 2015, according to FDOT. The city’s deadline for completion is December 2015.Traffic is frequently congested in that part of town. There are popular retailers and restaurants — including Walmart, Publix and McDonald’s — along that stretch, as well as access to I-95.“There’s going to be a lot of construction, but we’re going to try and minimize the impacts,” said Cote.Some of the work will be done at night and during weekends, he said. The city is aiming to avoid lane closures during the busiest times of the day.“It shouldn’t be a huge hindrance, but obviously it’s a construction zone and there will be impacts,” said Cote.The city began advertising for bids in June 2013. Typically, the advertising process lasts about a month but the city extended it into September, said Keane. More time was needed so that contractors would have a clearer understanding of how in-depth the project was going to be, she said.The bid was awarded finally to P&S Paving out of Daytona Beach in December 2013, according to city documents.Cindi Lane, a city spokeswoman, said the project did come in over budget but that wasn’t much of a factor in the delay. City officials were busy “behind the scenes” with utility planning, setting up public communications, pre-construction meetings and other jobs, and in the midst of that, the city was trying to give its best guess for a start date, Lane said.Besides the additional lanes, the project will include a new water main, converting the old main to an irrigation line, relocating palm trees, removing oak trees and making upgrades to nearby stormwater retention ponds.The desire for a wider road between Cypress Point and Florida Park has existed since before Palm Coast was incorporated as a city more than 14 years ago.The bridge over I-95 was built with the expectation that the road would be widened in the future. Therefore, the bridge itself won’t have to be widened.Cote said there will be a new coat of concrete over the bridge and a pedestrian-bike trail along both sides. A boundary wall will be built to better protect those who use the trail, said Cote.The city has launched a website and started a toll-free hot line to keep the public informed about the project as it moves forward. More information is available online at palmcoastpkwy.com or by calling 1-800-515-9194.

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